Method of plating



Aug. 8, 1933.

W. R. STOCKING METHOD OF PLATING Filed April 2, 1929 Patented Aug. 8, 1933 PATENT OFFICE UNITED. STATES METHOD OF PLATING tion of Connecticut Application April 2, 1929. Serial No. 351,926

6Claims.

liLy invention relates more particularly to that method of plating whereby the thickness of the plated surface is increased at certain desired points, and an object of my invention, among others, is the production of a plated article having the thickness of the plated portion increased in a manner to add to the wearing qualities of such portion and also in a manner to avoid any appearance of the article having been increased in thickness.

One manner of carrying out my improved process, and in the practice of which the objects herein set out, as well as others, may be attained is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a bottom View of a spoon blank illustrating plated spots thereon produced in a preliminary step in the operation.

Figure 2 is a view in lengthwise section through such blank, the thickness of the plated spots being exaggerated.

Figure 3 is a view, scale enlarged, in section through a portion of a set of dies shown as acting upon the article of Figs. 1 and 2 in an advanced step in my improved process.

Figure 4 is a bottom view of one end of a spoon illustrating the plated spot thereon after it has been subjected to the action of the dies.

Figure 5 is a view in lengthwise section through one end of a spoon after the process has been completed, the thickness of the plated surfaces being exaggerated.

It will be understood that my invention may be applied to articles of various sorts, a spoon having been selected by me for the purpose of disclosure of my invention herein simply from the ,fact that the invention is particularly applicable to various kinds of tableware.

I am aware that it is not new to increase the thickness of articles of plated ware at certain spots by a plating operation, and then to plate the entire article and I am, therefore, not claiming such herein, but what I am seeking to accomplish is a process and article in part thus formed whereby the durability in matter of wear is increased and also whereby the article is devoid of an appearance of extra plating.

As a preliminary step in my improved process I take an article, as a spoon 6, and plate thereon spots 7, 8, at points subjected to the greatest amount of wear in use. These spots will be of such size as to amply protect the article under ordinary conditions of use, and will be of such thickness as will effectually accomplish this purpose. Any of the ordinary methods of plating may be employed to produce these spots.

After the article has been thus plated it is positioned between dies 9, 10 which dies, it will be understood, comprise a part of any ordinary press for forcibly closing the space between the dies. The article with the plated spots, hereinabove referred to, is thus subjected to considerable pressure and in this operatio n'the plated spots are so formed that the margins are obscured to such extent that they will*disappear in subsequent plating operations. This action of the dies also condenses the plated metal and hardens it to such an extent that its resistance to wear is greatly increased.

This treatment of the partially plated blank enables me to use a pure virgin metal for plating the spot, this metal being of the purest known to the art. The action of the dies places the plated spot in such condition as to greatly increase its resistance to wear, and when the outer coat of plated metal, herein referred to, is worn through, the plated spot, being of the same quality of metal, will prevent such wear from becoming apparent, as is the case in methods heretofore employed wherein, in order to obtain a plated spot that will sufficiently resist wear, an alloy has been used which differs in color from the outer or covering plate and which, by reason of this difference in color, readily discloses the wearing away of the outer plate.

If desired, in the operation of compressing the metal a figure or ornamentation 11 may be produced upon a plated spot, and this will further increase the durability as to wear. I have set forth my process herein as embodying the production of the plated spots and the action of dies thereon on an article previously formed; but it will be understood that good results may be obtained in any process so long as it involves the action of dies after the plated spots have been produced.

After the article is subjected to the steps hereinabove set forth it is then plated in an ordinary manner as to the entire outer surface, thereby producing a covering plating layer 12, as shown in Figure 5 of the drawing.

I have found that my invention not only has the advantages hereinbefore set forth; but that it further enables articles to be produced more rapidly than by previous operations. If the operation of plating be speeded up, in any well known manner, a roughness is liable to be producedupon the plated spots. With my improved process, however, this will be immaterial for the reason that the roughness will be removed by the action of the dies, and I am, therefore, enabled to speed up the operation of plating the articles and thereby produce them at a faster rate than has heretofore been possible.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes I have described the principles of operation of my invention, together with the device which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof; but I desire to have it understood that the device shown is only illustrative, and that the invention may be carried out by other means and applied to uses other than those above set out.

I claim v 1. The process of producing plated articles that consists in plating a spot upon such article, condensing only such spot by pressure, while maintaining it above the surrounding surface and then covering the entire article with a plated layer of the same metal as that comprising the spot.

- 2. The process of producing plated articles that consists in plating a spot upon such article, placing the article while cold between dies and causing said dies to exert pressure to condense only the plated spot while maintaining it above the surrounding surface, and then covering the entire article with a plated layer of the same metal as that comprising the spot.

3. The process of producing plated articles that consists in plating a spot upon such article, subjecting such plated spot to the pressure 01' dies having a figure thereon to condense and simultaneously therewith to produce such figure upon the plated spot while maintaining it above the surrounding surface, and then covering the entire article with a plated layer of the same metal as that comprising the spot. 4. A plated article embodying a spot produced bya plating process on the surface of said article, said spot being condensed and thereby hardened but projecting above the surrounding surface, and a plating layer covering the entire article including said plated and condensed spot with the same metal as that comprising the spot.

5; The process of producing plated articles that consists in plating a spot of unalloyed metal upon such articles projecting above the surface thereof, condensing such spot by pressure, and then covering the entire article with a plated layer of the same metal as that comprising the spot.

6. A plated article embodying a spot produced by the use of an unalloyed metal in a plating process on the surface of said article projecting above the surface thereof, said spot being con- .densed and thereby hardened, and a plated layer WILLIAM R. STOCKING. 

